Global Impact of Plastic Pollution and Its Management for Sustainable Development

Abstract

Plastic pollution is a global occurrence from villages to urban, farms to deserts, deep oceans to mountaintops, tropical landfills to arctic snow including in food chain. Over the past 60 years, there has been a steady build-up of plastic garbage on land and ocean's surface, mainly because of the unplanned, unrestricted use of plastic in routine use, non-cycling and use and throw habit of a common man. As usage of this strong and cheap material has increased over the past few decades, the waste problem has gotten worse because of non-biodegradation in nature. Since the turn of the century, the amount of plastic produced worldwide has quadrupled, reaching over 400 million metric tonnes annually in 2021. While plastic items typically have a lifespan of ten years, depending on their composition and method of disposal, plastics can take up to 500 years to degrade. The environment is harmed by the removal of all this plastic. Only 16% of plastics are recycled; the remainder is either disposed of in landfills or burned.